Life Decoded with Mel

In America, we say things like “time is money” or “don’t waste my time.” These common phrases reveal how we feel about time - it is scarce, it is valuable, and not to be wasted. But what is so incredibly fascinating and somewhat sad is reality of how we actually spend our time. Data from The American Time Use Survey and Our World in Data reveals the truth about time with family and friends. After this episode, you make make some changes to how you allocate your time.

Link to Charts/Data referenced in episode: https://ourworldindata.org/time-with-others-lifetime

 Relationships can be incredible rewarding and incredibly challenging at the same time. As human beings we have needs and they often vary from moment to moment. We often find ourselves in situations where the person we are in a relationship with has a need that is different than our own.  In this episode, we discuss how to navigate these tensions in relationships without destroying the relationship it self. 

While many people use these words interchangeably, they are not the same. In this episode, we go over the differences between these words and why it's important to accurately represent your experiences. Perhaps you thought you were feeling overwhelmed, when really you are feeling burned out. We will also discuss symptoms of burnout and which on disproportionately affects women. Lastly, we will end on some action items for you to process your stress instead of numbing and escaping it.

We have countless of interactions with people throughout our week, not all of them may be pleasant. Today we cover a little bit about how we evaluate other people's behavior and how that affects our perception of them. You'll learn how often we practice harsh judgment and how it negatively impacts our self-talk. Perception checking is a framework that requires self-awareness and empathy, let's practice together shall we?

We all have days that are unpredictable, ironic, and a little weird. In this episode, I share a story about a interesting day I had and how it was another lesson in mindfulness. You will never be a master of mindfulness, you will merely improve. Some days you'll be extraordinary and others you will act mindless, I am no exception. I hope this simple, but hopeful story will make you smile and lead you to do the same for others. 

Many of us don't realize how our words are creating mental barriers and adding to our emotional stress. In this episode, we uncover little things you are saying every day that are working against you completing your goals.

 Now, why do these little words matter? Well, there was a study done in the Journal of Consumer Research that investigated the influence of self-talk on resisting temptation and motivating goal-directed behavior (Patrick & Hagtvedt, 2012).  Join me as we uncover ways to empower your language and get you moving closer to your goals.

Listening is one of the most important ingredients in relationships, yet many of us struggle with how to listen. In this episode, we discuss the characteristics of different listening styles. Understanding your default listening styles can help you identify when and where it's most appropriate to use. 

Perhaps you've heard of mindfulness, but have you heard of mindful communication? In this first episode we explore the definition of mindfulness and why mindful communication is essential for both our professional and personal lives. More importantly, we talk about how you can began to identify unconscious patterns by taking a closer look at something you do every day. 

Mindful listening requires more than just the desire to listen. Often we use the words hearing and listening interchangeably, yet they have completely different meanings. In this episode you will learn about the different styles of listening and how to identify your listening style. In addition, we will discuss common barriers to listening and poor listening habits we engage in unconsciously.